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Quality assurance teams are carrying a lot right now. AI reshapes our processes, release cycles accelerate, and expectations never let up. When the ground keeps shifting under your feet, it helps to step into a room full of people who face the same challenges. QA conferences give you a place to share real-world methods with peers and see familiar problems from fresh angles.
At QA conferences in 2026, you’ll see a heavy focus on testing AI-driven features for safety and reliability, using AI to generate and maintain tests, stabilizing flaky automation at scale, tightening quality gates in CI/CD, and deepening the connection between DevOps pipelines, observability, and test strategy. The conferences are a practical way to sharpen your skills and stay connected to a community that’s growing right alongside you.
Here’s your running list of major QA conferences for 2026. We’ll keep updating it as new details roll in.
(Last updated: January 5th, 2026)
January 2026
ICSTM 2026 (Bali)
Conference Overview: Academic in focus, this conference connects researchers and practitioners who care about advancing formal methods and new approaches in software testing. It’s a good fit if your team experiments with cutting-edge techniques or publishes testing research.
Dates: January 5–6, 2026
Location: Bali, Indonesia / Online (hybrid)
Website: https://waset.org/software-testing-and-methods-conference-in-january-2026-in-bali
SoCraTes Conference Switzerland 2026
Conference Overview: An unconference for software crafters, this event leans heavily on collaborative sessions instead of slide decks. It’s ideal for senior engineers and QA leaders who want to discuss quality, design, and testing practices in depth with peers.
Dates: January 29 – February 1, 2026
Location: Monastery Ilanz, Ilanz, Switzerland
Website: https://socrates-ch.org/
February 2026
Automation Guild 2026
Conference Overview: A fully online conference focused on real-world test automation strategy, tools, and patterns. Useful for automation engineers and managers looking to improve reliability, coverage, and maintainability in their pipelines.
Dates: February 9–13, 2026
Location: Online
Website: https://testguild.com/ag-2026/
RoboCon 2026 (In-Person)
Conference Overview: RoboCon centers on the Robot Framework and related tooling, with deep dives into automation patterns and ecosystem best practices. Strong fit for teams standardizing on Robot Framework or scaling cross-team automation.
Dates: February 10–13, 2026
Location: Helsinki, Finland
Website: https://robocon.io/
axe-con 2026
Conference Overview: A broad digital accessibility conference that connects designers, developers, QA, and legal/compliance stakeholders. It’s especially useful for organizations formalizing accessibility testing and aligning it with product and engineering roadmaps.
Dates: February 24–25, 2026
Location: Online (virtual conference)
Website: https://www.deque.com/axe-con/
March 2026
RoboCon 2026 (Online)
Conference Overview: The online edition brings RoboCon’s Robot Framework content to distributed teams, with remote-friendly talks and sessions. It works well for global QA groups who can’t travel but still want shared training around their automation stack.
Dates: March 3–6, 2026
Location: Online
Website: https://robocon.io/
Test Automation Days 2026
Conference Overview: A practitioner-oriented event focused on modern test automation approaches, architectures, and case studies. Great for automation engineers and test leads who want to benchmark their practices against other mature teams.
Dates: March 4–5, 2026
Location: Gooiland Events, Hilversum, Netherlands
Website: https://www.testautomationdays.com/
PeersCon 2026
Conference Overview: A community-driven, low-frills conference with a strong emphasis on real testing stories and peer discussion. Best for hands-on testers and leads who value honest conversations over polished marketing talks.
Dates: March 12, 2026
Location: Trent Conference Centre, Nottingham, UK
Website: https://testingpeerscon.com/
QonfX (San Francisco)
Conference Overview: A smaller, leadership-focused gathering emphasizing conversations around QA strategy, culture, and team enablement. Good for heads of QA and engineering managers who want curated, peer-level discussions rather than a large expo.
Dates: March 13, 2026
Location: San Francisco, California, USA
Website: https://www.thetesttribe.com/qonfx/
ParisTestConf 7
Conference Overview: A one-day testing conference in Paris that blends talks on automation, quality culture, and modern test practices. It’s a good option for European teams looking for a compact, content-dense event.
Dates: March 31, 2026
Location: Maison des Associations, Paris, France
Website: https://paristestconf.com/
April 2026
QonfX (Bangalore)
Conference Overview: A smaller, leadership-focused gathering emphasizing conversations around QA strategy, culture, and team enablement. Good for heads of QA and engineering managers who want curated, peer-level discussions rather than a large expo.
Dates: April 10, 2026
Location: Bengaluru, India
Website: https://www.thetesttribe.com/qonfx/
UCAAT 2026
Conference Overview: UCAAT focuses on standardized test specification languages and advanced automation techniques, with a strong telecom and systems background. It suits teams working in complex, regulated, or protocol-heavy environments.
Dates: April 14–16, 2026
Location: ETSI Headquarters, Sophia Antipolis, France
Website: https://www.etsi.org/events/2540-2026-04-12th-ucaat-user-conference-on-advanced-automated-testing
QA Financial Forum 2026 (Toronto)
Conference Overview: A one-day event on quality and testing in financial services, covering topics like test automation, risk, and regulatory impact. Best for QA leaders, CTOs, and platform owners in banks, insurers, and fintech firms.
Dates: April 23, 2026
Location: The Westin Harbour Castle Conference Centre, Toronto, Canada
Website: https://qa-financial.com/events/qa-financial-forum-toronto-2026
QonfX (Berlin)
Conference Overview: A smaller, leadership-focused gathering emphasizing conversations around QA strategy, culture, and team enablement. Good for heads of QA and engineering managers who want curated, peer-level discussions rather than a large expo.
Dates: April 23, 2026
Location: Berlin, Germany
Website: https://www.thetesttribe.com/qonfx/
STAREAST 2026
Conference Overview: One of the largest US testing conferences, with broad coverage across automation, agile testing, leadership, and tooling. It’s well-suited to teams that want a mix of hands-on sessions for practitioners and strategy content for managers.
Dates: April 26 – May 1, 2026
Location: Rosen Centre Hotel, Orlando, Florida, USA & Online
Website: https://stareast.techwell.com/
May 2026
Romania QualityConnect 2026
Conference Overview: A regional conference focused on quality engineering and modern testing practices in and around Eastern Europe. It’s useful for QA leaders building local networks and teams interested in practical case studies.
Dates: May 6–7, 2026
Location: Grand Hotel Italia, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Website: https://qualityconnect.ro/
SeleniumConf & AppiumConf 2026
Conference Overview: A combined event for browser and mobile automation practitioners, centered on the Selenium and Appium ecosystems. Ideal for teams standardizing on these tools and looking for guidance on stability, performance, and CI/CD integration.
Dates: May 6–8, 2026
Location: Veles e Vents, Valencia, Spain
Website: https://seleniumconf.com/
QonfX (Porto)
Conference Overview: A smaller, leadership-focused gathering emphasizing conversations around QA strategy, culture, and team enablement. Good for heads of QA and engineering managers who want curated, peer-level discussions rather than a large expo.
Dates: May 9, 2026
Location: Porto, Portugal
Website: https://www.thetesttribe.com/qonfx/
WeTest.Athens 2026
Conference Overview: A one-day conference that links software testing with UX, highlighting how quality and experience teams can collaborate. Strong fit for organizations breaking down silos between QA, product, and design.
Dates: May 12, 2026
Location: Athens Concert Hall (Megaron), Athens, Greece
Website: https://www.wetest-athens.gr/
QA Financial Forum 2026 (New York)
Conference Overview: A finance-focused event examining how QA, automation, and governance intersect in trading, banking, and fintech platforms. Useful for technical leaders who need to align testing strategy with regulatory and operational risk.
Dates: May 12, 2026
Location: New York, NY, USA
Website: https://qa-financial.com/events/qa-financial-forum-new-york-2026
QA Healthcare & Insurance Forum 2026 (Philadelphia)
Conference Overview: This forum looks at software quality in healthcare and insurance, with attention to compliance, patient/member experience, and automation. It’s a good match for QA leaders supporting EHRs, claims systems, and other high-stakes platforms.
Dates: May 14, 2026
Location: Philadelphia, PA, USA
Website: https://qa-financial.com/events/qa-healthcare-insurance-forum-philadelphia-2026
WCQI 2026
Conference Overview: A broad quality conference that goes beyond software, covering organizational quality systems, metrics, and continuous improvement. Best for QA leaders and executives who own quality programs that span multiple departments.
Dates: May 17–20, 2026
Location: Marriott Orlando World Center, Orlando, Florida, USA
Website: https://asq.org/conferences/wcqi
International Software Quality Days 2026
Conference Overview: A European event focused on software quality across the full lifecycle, from requirements through operations. It suits teams who want a mix of technical testing content and higher-level quality engineering topics.
Location: Austria Center Vienna, Vienna, Austria
Website: https://www.software-quality-days.com/
ICST 2026
Conference Overview: A leading academic and industrial research conference on software testing and verification. Strong fit for organizations with research partnerships or teams experimenting with advanced techniques and tools.
Dates: May 18–22, 2026
Location: Daejeon, Republic of Korea
Website: https://conf.researchr.org/home/icst-2026
Test Coast 2026
Conference Overview: A regional Scandinavian conference emphasizing practical software testing and community connections. It’s well-suited to QA engineers and leads on the west coast of Sweden and nearby regions.
Dates: May 21, 2026
Location: Gothenburg, Sweden
Website: https://www.testcoast.se/
OnlineTestConf 2026
Conference Overview: A long-running virtual conference with global speakers and free access, focused on everyday testing challenges. Good for distributed teams who want accessible training without travel budgets.
Dates: May 26, 2026
Location: Online
Website: https://www.onlinetestconf.com/
expo:QA'26
Conference Overview: A major Spanish QA and testing conference covering automation, test management, and modern practices. It’s a strong option for teams working in or near Spain who want broad, vendor-neutral content.
Dates: May 26–28, 2026
Location: Madrid, Spain
Website: https://expoqa.eu/
June 2026
Nordic Testing Days 2026
Conference Overview: A “by testers, for testers” conference with a strong community feel and practical talks. Great for teams that value real-world experience over theoretical content.
Dates: June 3–5, 2026
Location: Tallinn, Estonia
Website: https://nordictestingdays.eu/
Innovate QA Conference 2026
Conference Overview: A conference designed for QA and engineering leaders who want deeper technical content and fewer generic talks. It’s a good fit if you’re evolving your test strategy alongside architecture and platform decisions.
Dates: June 4–5, 2026
Location: Westin Bellevue, Bellevue, Washington, USA
Website: https://innovateqaevents.com/
QonfX (New York)
Conference Overview: A smaller, leadership-focused gathering emphasizing conversations around QA strategy, culture, and team enablement. Good for heads of QA and engineering managers who want curated, peer-level discussions rather than a large expo.
Dates: June 5, 2026
Location: New York, NY, USA
Website: https://www.thetesttribe.com/qonfx/
EuroSTAR 2026
Conference Overview: Europe’s flagship testing conference, offering a wide range of tracks from hands-on testing to leadership and strategy. It works well for teams sending mixed groups of practitioners, test managers, and heads of quality.
Location: Oslo, Norway
Website: https://conference.eurostarsoftwaretesting.com/
QA or the Highway 2026
Conference Overview: A single-day, budget-friendly conference that focuses on practical testing lessons and approachable speakers. Ideal for regional teams in the US Midwest who want value without a week-long commitment.
Dates: TBD (2025 event ran in late June)
Location: Columbus, Ohio, USA
Website: https://qaorthehwy.com/
July 2026
Testing Talks Conference Sydney 2026
Conference Overview: A high-energy event for testers and QA engineers, with a focus on AI in testing, automation, and quality culture. It’s a solid choice for teams in Australia who want regional case studies and networking.
Dates: TBD (2025 event ran in late July)
Location: Sydney, Australia
Website: https://www.testingtalks.com.au/
August 2026
ICSTP 2026 (Amsterdam)
Conference Overview: An academic-leaning conference examining processes, models, and methods for software testing. Best suited to organizations exploring process improvements or collaborating with universities.
Dates: August 3–4, 2026
Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands / Online (hybrid)
Website: https://waset.org/software-testing-process-conference-in-august-2026-in-amsterdam
TestMu Conference 2026
Conference Overview: A large online conference covering automation, cloud testing, and tooling trends at scale. It’s useful for teams modernizing their test infrastructure or exploring new platforms.
Dates: August 19–21, 2026
Location: Online
Website: https://www.lambdatest.com/testmuconf-2026
QonfX (Singapore)
Conference Overview: A smaller, leadership-focused gathering emphasizing conversations around QA strategy, culture, and team enablement. Good for heads of QA and engineering managers who want curated, peer-level discussions rather than a large expo.
Dates: August 28, 2026
Location: Singapore
Website: https://www.thetesttribe.com/qonfx/
CAST 2026 – Conference of the Association for Software Testing
Conference Overview: A community-driven conference that emphasizes discussion and critical thinking about testing practices. Strong fit for testers and leaders who care about context-driven testing and thoughtful experimentation.
Dates: TBD (2025 event ran in late August)
Location: TBD (Previously in North America and Australia)
Website: https://associationforsoftwaretesting.org/conference/
September 2026
TACON 2026
Conference Overview: A German-language conference focused on testing, test automation, and quality management in software development. It’s best for teams in DACH countries who want local case studies and technical depth.
Dates: September 16–17, 2026
Location: Leipzig, Germany
Website: https://events.summit-community.de/event/tacon-2026/
STARWEST 2026
Conference Overview: A large North American testing conference with broad coverage of automation, DevOps, leadership, and strategy. It’s a good choice for teams sending a mix of individual contributors and decision-makers.
Dates: September 20–25, 2026
Location: Disneyland Hotel, Anaheim, California, USA & Online
Website: https://starwest.techwell.com/
October 2026
MoTaCon 2026 (formerly TestBash)
Conference Overview: A community-centric testing conference mixing talks, activities, and networking in a relaxed setting. Best suited to testers and leads who want to share experiences and grow their professional network.
Dates: October 1, 2026
Location: Brighton Dome, Brighton, UK
Website: https://www.ministryoftesting.com/motacon
ICSTM 2026 (New York)
Conference Overview: A research-oriented conference bringing together academics and practitioners to discuss testing methods and results. It’s useful for teams looking to align real-world testing with formal techniques.
Dates: October 5–6, 2026
Location: New York, NY, USA / Online (digital)
Website: https://waset.org/software-testing-and-methods-conference-in-october-2026-in-new-york
HUSTEF 2026
Conference Overview: One of Europe’s larger testing conferences, with content spanning automation, performance, security, and leadership. It’s a strong regional hub for teams in Central and Eastern Europe.
Dates: October 6–8, 2026
Location: Hungexpo Congress Centre, Budapest, Hungary
Website: https://hustef.com/
Testing Talks Conference Melbourne 2026
Conference Overview: The Melbourne edition of Testing Talks brings the same focus on AI, automation, and quality leadership to a different Australian hub. It’s valuable for QA and engineering leaders building networks and sharing local experience.
Dates: TBD (2025 event ran in late October)
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Website: https://www.testingtalks.com.au/
TestCon Europe 2026
Conference Overview: A broad testing conference focused on trends, tools, and practical techniques for improving software reliability. Good for teams that want a bit of everything: automation, performance, security, and management topics.
Dates: TBD (2025 event ran in late October)
Location: Multikino, Vilnius, Lithuania & Online
Website: https://testcon.lt/
ICSTP 2026 (Los Angeles)
Conference Overview: This event looks at processes and frameworks for organizing and improving software testing work. It’s a fit for QA managers and architects who own test strategy and governance.
Dates: October 26–27, 2026
Location: Los Angeles, CA, USA / Online (hybrid)
Website: https://waset.org/software-testing-process-conference-in-october-2026-in-los-angeles
PNSQC 2026 – Pacific Northwest Software Quality Conference
Conference Overview: A long-running regional conference that blends talks on testing, quality engineering, and process improvement. Best for teams who want thoughtful, practitioner-driven content rather than vendor-centric sessions.
Dates: TBD (2025 event ran in October)
Location: Portland, Oregon, USA
Website: https://pnsqc.org/
STARCANADA 2026
Conference Overview: A Canadian counterpart to STARWEST/STAREAST, with tracks for hands-on testing, automation, and leadership. Good for teams in Canada and nearby regions who want a well-established conference closer to home.
Dates: TBD (2025 event ran in late October)
Location: Toronto, Canada
Website: https://starcanada.techwell.com/
November 2026
AutomationSTAR 2026
Conference Overview: A European conference dedicated specifically to test automation topics, patterns, and tools. Ideal for teams that already do automation and want to improve reliability, coverage, and maintainability.
Dates: November 4–5, 2026
Location: Flanders Meeting & Convention Center, Antwerp, Belgium
Website: https://automation.eurostarsoftwaretesting.com/
Agile Testing Days 2026
Conference Overview: A four-day event focused on agile testing, collaboration, and modern team structures. It’s a good fit for cross-functional teams and leaders evolving how QA fits into agile and DevOps.
Dates: November 16–19, 2026
Location: Dorint Sanssouci Berlin/Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
Website: https://agiletestingdays.com/
Testing Assembly Conference 2026
Conference Overview: Finland’s largest QA gathering, emphasizing community, practical talks, and networking. Strong fit for Nordic teams and anyone interested in how peers are scaling quality practices.
Dates: TBD (2025 event ran in late November)
Location: Helsinki, Finland
Website: https://testingassembly.fistb.fi/
Software-QS-Tag 2026
Conference Overview: A German-language conference centered on software quality assurance and testing in industrial and enterprise contexts. It’s useful for teams in regulated or mission-critical domains.
Dates: TBD (2025 event ran in November)
Location: Frankfurt, Germany
Website: https://www.qs-tag.de/en/
Testing United Conference 2026
Conference Overview: A Central European testing conference that brings together testers, leads, and managers across industries. It’s best for teams that want a regional mix of practical talks and high-level perspectives.
Dates: TBD (2025 event ran in November)
Location: TBD (Previously in Europe)
Website: https://www.testingunited.com/
QA Healthcare & Insurance Forum London 2026
Conference Overview: A focused event on software quality in healthcare and insurance, tying testing and automation to risk, regulation, and patient/member outcomes. It’s especially relevant for QA leaders working on critical systems and platforms in these sectors.
Dates: TBD (2025 date: November 26, 2025)
Location: London, UK
Website: https://qa-financial.com/events/
December 2026
To be announced